Paul Spoonley: Chinese have much to offer

Paul Spoonley

This weekend marks another important chapter in the history of the Chinese in New Zealand. Sparked by the 2002 apology offered by the New Zealand Government for historical wrongs towards the Chinese, and a 2004 seminar on what this might mean, the Auckland branch of the Chinese Association is hosting a conference.

However, it is no ordinary conference. It is ironically labelled "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Banana", and it will take a close look at the role that Chinese have, and should, play in twenty-first century New Zealand.

It looks inward and asks what Chinese identity (identities?) means and outwards by posing some interesting questions about relations with other communities and the role of Chinese in New Zealand society generally. There is a lot to consider.

This community has been part of New Zealand for 140 years. In a British colony, with all the virtues and prejudices that this entailed, being Chinese has attracted more than its share of racism and discrimination.

But for all that, the community has got on with the business of doing what any community does: raising families, getting educated and providing economic security for its members. The new online encyclopaedia Te Ara and the national museum Te Papa document that history and the contribution of the community in an interesting way.

But it is a new century, one that is likely to be dominated by China and overseas Chinese communities, and New Zealand has developed much more extensive links with Asia. China is now New Zealand's fourth most important trading partner and one that contributes a large number of students and a growing number of tourists to key industries in this country.

One aspect of these new links with Asia is immigration. The abandonment of a racially discriminatory immigration policy in 1987 has led to much more culturally diverse immigration flows. Of the 104,500 Chinese in New Zealand, 62,000 have been born overseas with two-thirds coming from China itself. The New Zealand-born find themselves outnumbered. This presents challenges to the community.

There are three quite separate groups : those who have been born in New Zealand; those born overseas (who are themselves divided by politics and birthplace); and the New Zealand-born to recent immigrants or the 1.5 generation - born overseas but raised here.

Mix of experiences

Each has their own view about what should happen and who should represent their interests. The conference brings together the mix of experiences and approaches, and it should result in some lively discussions, a good antidote to outsider views that it is a community that has a common language, culture or politics.

Then there are the issues of relations with other communities. Since the "Inv-Asian" newspaper articles of 1993, there has been a resurgence of anti-Asian sentiment as some New Zealanders struggle to come to terms with a new cultural diversity and global geo-politics. Attitude surveys show that this antipathy reached a peak around the 1996 election, and negative attitudes have been declining since but they are still there.

The media have played a largely positive role. Although there are still some glaring blunders and the repetition of stereotypes, the media have been much more critical of anti-immigration sentiments (witness the Herald editorial this week, link below) and have provided information about immigrant communities. All the major dailies have run series in recent years on immigration policy and immigrants.

That does not stop others suggesting that Asians are "flooding" the country (the numbers have dipped sharply and 7200 Asian immigrants arrived in the country in the year up to April 2005), that they contribute to crime (depends – mostly Asians are much less likely to offend than other New Zealanders) and that they are stand-offish (our research shows that Asians would like to mix more with other New Zealanders but often find their approaches rebuffed). And then there is racial labelling.

The label "Asian" encompasses everyone from Pakistan to Japan. Communities such as the Chinese rightly point out that this term ignores important cultural differences. Moreover, the label is often used as a racial slur. How can they engage with others if there is not a recognition of who they are and some respect for these distinctive communities? Identifying people in terms of how they would like to be known is a common courtesy that applies to everyone.

These anti-immigration sentiments and racial slurs highlight a fundamental gap in New Zealand policy.

Bicultural options were developed in the 1980s and have become part of the policy landscape. Maori – politically, culturally and economically – have developed new options and institutions. But other ethnic groups often feel excluded from bicultural debates while Maori often feel marginalised in terms of the development of immigration policy. Unlike Canada and Australia, New Zealand has yet to develop a national stance on multiculturalism despite the fact that proportionately, the country has more overseas born than Canada and only slightly less than Australia.

There have been some developments, such as the Office of Ethnic Affairs and Human Rights Commission contribute to ethnic policy development. But there are difficulties. The issues have been so politicised since the mid-1990s that sensible debate is often lacking. Where and how do the various communities talk to each other about these issues? Is there a multiculturalism which would complement biculturalism, not supplant it?

In 1999, the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs hosted a conference, "Pacific Vision", which provided something of a landmark in terms of new policies and approaches for Pacific peoples. Many of the same issues which face the Chinese community were part of that conference : differences between those who are New Zealand-born and the overseas-born; how best to contribute to New Zealand as well as retaining traditional cultural values; how to relate to tangata whenua; and leadership. Another community will have its chance to talk about their future this weekend.

* Professor Paul Spoonley gave this keynote address at the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Banana Conference today.